A Bug Playground, really

And I don't mean for my bug. Well, actually it was a gift for my bug.  But it really is a bug playground. It is totally cool. Our bug is very much into bugs right now. And our dear friend got her a bug playground. Seriously. 

Now that is has warmed up we found some pill bugs, you know, Rollie Pollies. We tend to find the bugs some time during the day, bring the playground inside, usually into her bedroom, and then forget about them. Until Mommy panics and says “Where are the bugs?!?” and we put them outside in the dark. But one night after dinner Mommy got fascinated with the activity and snapped some shots. So here you go, living vicariously through our Bug Playground. 

Log Cabin Wonkiness and Wonderfulness

Last summer I took a class from Malka Dubrawsky with a wonderfully creative friend. It was so great.

The technique was very much out of my comfort zone – at first! Then I totally got into it. We all brought scraps to work with. And I realized that my scraps are all little girl colors. I had scrap envy for a while looking around the room. Such beautiful colors. We were to create some log cabin blocks, Malka style. Which really means as wonky as you want. No rulers, no straight edge. Now I have to admit that I may have made only one log cabin block before, period. So even that was new to me. 

I think her suggestion was to make 9 blocks to make a small throw. Well I stopped at 8. Which was great. (Ha.) So when I put them together I came up with 2 good sized blocks, about 14-15 inches, kind of almost square.

For Christmas I made them into pillows for the girls (the bug’s cousins). They turned out great. And are well loved. 

(Okay, Linda, does that period go inside the parenthesis or outside?)

Block for birthday quilt

This is a block for CeCe's 'big' birthday.

Her daughter sent out a letter to family and friends, with the white square, and said have at it. And then send back to her. Our assumption was that she would work with a friend to put into a quilt for her Mom's big birthday. Actually, she put them in a photo album and CeCe gets to put them in a quilt. I actually like the photo albumn idea if you can't get something done in time, as she has been able to share all the blocks that people sent. It is amazing how many of them you can pick out by the style, the content, the technique and such. Let me tell you, this is going to be one purple quilt.

A friend of ours made one in the same style before the Bug was born. You can see it here. I treasure it. And I hope to be able to make one for someone else one day.

Cutting it too close

Wow. That was a close one.

This is a kit I purchased at a guild meeting. It is Thai silk to benefit a group that are trying to get girls out of the sex trade there. I'll show the entire quilt later. But the binding made me a little nervous. They definitely cut their fabric to exactly what they think you will need.

See, I have been doing some quilty things...

Gift Catch Up

I didn't realize I hadn't shown all my gifts I made for Christmas. Which to be honest really wasn't that many. Or rather, it was a lot, but for a small group. I have no idea exactly when it started, but for Christmas I make a 'small' gift for the people I work with. Some of the people I work with. About 8 of the people I work with. This year it was a set of pot holders. So that is actually 16 pot holders.

In years past I made bracelets for the women, knitted scarves for the women, did a whole homemade lavendar theme gift for the women, etc. Last year I bought a christmas panel with 8 designs so I made 8 small wall hangings. I let them choose their style. I just added small borders, quilted around some of the design for effect and bound them. It seems like such a small project, and then you multiply it by 8. But if you can get started early enough, it can be done.

Each set had one pinwheel

and a variation on a disappearing nine patch.

simple backs.

I only wish I had made a set for myself.

Love this wreath for the beach

I just love this wreath.



And of course I want to make it. I'd love to give credit for the inspiration but the reality is I was on a walk with my girlfriend and she snapped a pic on her fancy phone and sent it to me. The closest I can get for accurate accreditation is some great bungalow type house in Pacific Beach.

It has air plants and maybe some bromeliad type plants and star fish and I think some very well placed shells. You can click on the photo to make it larger, not that it will be all that much more detailed. But hey, it looks great for a phone photo!

This was over the holidays so I wonder if this is just their 'holiday' wreath or if they have it up year round. I wonder if I could find that house again.....

I sure do wonder a lot.

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My REALLY BIG DEAL Cathedral Window pillow

I made a Cathedral Window pillow. This is a big deal people. A really big deal.



My usual rationale for making a specific quilt is along the lines of - oh, that looks easy enough, I think I could do that, or I try to make up something similar that I think will be easy and invariably is not because I am making it up as I go.

So to decide, knowingly, to do something difficult, or at least difficult looking, was a bit daunting. But it is totally cool. I made it for my mom. (Isn't it funny that I still make things for my mom because, you know, she has to love it cuz her kid made it. Not that I wouldn't make things for my mom anyhow, but when I do I get that ego boost I need. Works every time.)

I really love it. And, of course, I learned a lot as I did it. In this instance it was my not quite accurate ironing that set the tone for the rest of it. But I did overcome. And that fantastic design element of the buttons, in just the right color, adding depth and texture, at the intersections had nothing to with covering up some not quite exactness. Nothing at all.

So as I was feeling the high of completion I made the comment that I never needed to do another one of those, I could cross it off my list. And my mother-in-law sighed a heavy sigh. So maybe one more......

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Isn't he cute?

This very fun wall hanging was a gift from my cousin (okay, cousin-in-law). It was for my birthday. Which was quite some time ago, but hey, I'm behind, just a bit. There is a whole series of these from Happy Apple Quilts, called Garden Patch Cats. This one is called the pumpkat. The designer must be a veggie-file, as well as a feline lover. She has a whole range of them. Very cute. I always wanted to do at least one. I don't think I could handle a slew of these but I am loving my pumpkin cat!


Isn't he cute?


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Rag Numbers! Finally

So I finally got my rag numbers done. I only did three sets this time. Still a very cute project and one I recommend for a wide variety of ages.




I had originally done rag letters for all the kids in our group. I got the tutorial from Happy Together - such a fun blog.

Eiffel Tower for my Dad

My dad's name is Pierre. He went by Pete for probably 60 years of his life, but in the last 10 or so he has started introducing himself as Pierre. Both of his parents were born and raised in France in a little town called Joigny. I'm pretty sure they were married in France before they came to the U.S. so my dad is first generation American. My dad did not always like his name and growing up and through most of his adult life he was Pete or Peter. Now, he is Pierre. He loves all things French. I cannot count how many vacations he has taken to France. My mom has stopped going with him. She has other countries she wants to see. My sister-in-law always gets him a huge basket filled with everything French she can find throughout the year for Christmas. And he loves it.

So when I saw this pattern I thought of my dad. And when I saw it was a class being offered here, I signed up immediately. The pattern actually is for a wall hanging but I like quilts you can use. (Although I think this one is now hung up. And the one I gave my Mom is also hung. Theirs to do as they choose.) I added much wider borders and didn't do the PARIS applique. I like it just as it is.

(notice my little helpers feet with my big helper? so cute)


The quilting on this one turned out better than I thought. The border fabric is a diagonal lined print so I followed that for the outside quilting. The tower itself is from a fabric with a very tight squiggle, so I followed that for quitling as well. I defined the shape of the iron work on the bottom. And then I was stuck. What to do in the large off-white expanse? Why clouds of course. And they turned out good, if I say so myself. Just the thing. Then a large meander in the beige background.


And here is something you may never see again. A picture of me on this blog. Me in all my no make-up, weird hair wearing glory. And of course, with Pierre. I think he really liked it.

Rag Quilt Love

I should ammend that to say Rag Quilt Dye Cutter Love. Another Christmas gift I made, this one for my (husband's) first cousin once removed. Hah. That is a cousin's kid. She and her sister live with her Grandma, the aforementioned Aunt-in-Law. (Argh - saga, family yucks, etc.) But the blanket is super cute!


I do like rag quilts, but I don't like the cutting. Duh, most people don't. One of the stores near me has one of those accu cutter thingys with a 10" fringe cut square. You rent the machine for like $5 an hour. DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY I COULD GET CUT IN 1 HOUR? Gobs! And the fringe is longer, skinnier and much more consistent than I could ever do. Then you whip that puppy up in less than an hour of sewing time. Just love it. Need to do more of these. On my list...

(That seems to be my new mantra, On my list.... And I really do have one, in my head, of all the things I want to do. I think I need to put it down on paper somewhere. Or maybe on this blog somewhere. Yep. Look for it soon.)

Disappearing Figgy Nine Pudding Patch - or something like that

I am finally catching up on posting about some of my Christmas gifts - that I made, not that I received. Well, actually this picture is one I made for myself but I made one from the same fabric for my Aunt. (Okay, really she is my husband's Aunt. Can I call her mine? How does that work? Is she an Aunt-in-Law, or something absurd like that?)

I got the idea from this post way back last spring. (in true p.s. i quilt fasion i really need to loose the caps key from my keyboard.) i know this has been around and do you know how i know this? i was going through my sewing room, attempting to clean and i ran across a Quilt in a Day pattern called the Tossed Nine Patch which is basically the same thing, right? (getting rid of the caps key is very difficult for me, obviously.)


i have found lately that i am enjoying making things up as i go. i do like having a place to start, like the d9p. and then seeing what i can make from that. i think i am trending to modern quilting. and i am good with that.

Fatty, Fatty Two by Four

Seriously, that is the name of this pattern. Well, kind of. I modified it a little bit. I ended up making 2 lap quilts with only a few more large squares put in than the original pattern called for. They had an uneven number, and the placement was somewhat random - that kills me. I really need some structure, a pattern, a little reason in the design. Scrappy is very hard for me, so I overcompensate by overthinking the block placement. But hey, my overthinking on this one gave me two quilts I love.

I gave one to my best friend for Christmas and I kept one for me. Yeah! They were both quilted by Donna. This was another of the Friday Night Valet Sewing projects.

I need to find out what the project is for March. I need a fix!